williamson



No.` 623,454. Patented Apr. 18,1899. .1. n. WILLIAMSON, 1n. REGULATING VALVE FOB STEERING GEAR.

(Application filed Jan. 10, 1899.)

Patented Apr. I8, |899.

.1. D. WILLIAMSON, 1n. REGULATING VALVE vFR STEERING GEAR.

(Application led Jan. 1U, 1899.)

(No Modal.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 2`.

J. D. WILUAMSN, JB. REGULATING VALVE FOR STEERING HEAR.v

(Application med Jan. 1o, 12399.) um man.) 3 sheets-shears.

thviTnD STATES PATENT Prien.

JOHN D. IVILLIAMSON, JR., OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE W'ILLIAMSON BROTHERS COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

REGULATlNG-VALVE FOR STEHERING-GEAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 623,454, dated April 18, 1899.

Application filed January 10, 1899. Serial No. '701,774- (No model.)

To @ZZ whom, t may concern: the valve-rod of which is connected t0 an arm Be it known that I, JOHN D. WILLIAMSON, e' on a rook-shaft E. This rock-shaft has a .I r., a citizen of the United States, residing forked arm e2, engaged by la sleeve f on a in Philadelphia,Pennsylvania,have invented shaft F, geared by bevel-wheels f f2 to an certain Improvements in Regulating-Valves operating-shaft F', leading from the steering- 5 5 for Steering-Gears, of which the following is wheel. a specification. On the shaft F is a screw-thread, to which The object of my invention is to regulate is adapted a thread on the sleeve f, so that the admission of steam tothe operating-valve the sleeve will be moved in one direction by io of a steering-engine to prevent the too-sudturning the shaft; but the sleevefhas a pin- 6o den starting of the engine when the steeringion f3 geared to the gear-wheel o on the wheel is operated at the central position of drum, and as the drum revolvesthe sleeve is the rudder. moved on the shaft in a direction opposite to The great difficultywith steering-engines that above described, so that the valve is of the ordinary construction is the too-sudopened to admit steam to turn the drum; but 65 den opening of the operating-valve by the the drum'in turning tends to close the valve. quartermaster throwing the steering-wheel Theabove-described mechanism is common over too far when starting the engine, thereby in steering-engines heretofore made by me. giving such a large admission of steam when My present invention is as follows: G is 2o the rudder is in the central position and my improved automatic regulating valve, 7o when the engine'has comparatively little having a casing connected to the casing of work to perform that it causes the engine to the operating-valve E, in the present instance jump and give undue strain to the working made integral with it. I is the steam-inlet parts and also causes the waste of steam. pipe entering at the back of the casing. gis By my inventionthe admission of steam to a cylinder-valve having ports adapted to aline 75 the operating-valve is controlled by an autowith the passage g, leading to the operatingmatic valve operated by the drum, the valve valve. The valve-rod g2hasascrew-threaded opening as the drum is turned. The autoportion g3, adapted to a screw-threaded hub matic valve is closed at the center position; of a gear-wheel g4, mounted in a bearing a 3o but sufficient steam is allowed to pass the on the frame of the engine. The rod has a 8o valve to start the engine at any desired speed. squared portion g5 at its .outer end, and a In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis forked plate a', secured to the bearing, eX- a side view, partly in section, of a steering-entends over the bar and prevents it from turngine, illustrating my invention. Fig. 2 is an ing. On the drum-shaft B is a gear-wheel end view. Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3 3, b3, which meshes with an intermediate wheel 85 Fig. l; and Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the b4 on a stud projecting from the frame of the automatic regulating-valve. machine. This intermediate wheel meshes A is the frame of the steering-engine, and with the gear-wheel g4, so that as the drumadapted to bearings on this frame is a drumshaft B is turned the gear-wheel g4 is also 4o shaft B, on which is a rope-drum BC This turned, imparting a longitudinal movement 9o rope-drum is connected to a worm-wheel b on to the valve g in its casing, allowing more or the shaft B, which gears with a worm c on a less steam to How to the operating-valve. crank-shaft C, having cranks connected to When the rudder is in the center position, the the piston-rods of pistons adapted to the cylregulating-valve is closed, and as the drum inders D D. The cylinders are provided with is moved to shift the rudder the valve is grad- 95 the ordinary slide-valve chests d, (l. ually opened by the turning of the drum, and E is the operating-valve, connected to the when the drum is turned to bring the rudder steam-supply and to the cylinders D D. This to the center the valve is gradually closed. valve is constructed as shown in Fig. l, hav- Sufficient steam to start the engine is ad- 5o ing a ported casing and a cylindrical valve e, mitted through a luy-pass, which I prefer to 10o and h is a pipe leading from the valve H to the passage g', communicating with the operating-valve, so that there is always sufficient steam to start the engine. i t' are pipes leading from the back ot the valve-casing or from the steam-supply pipe l to the valve-chests CZ CZ to balance the valves in the chests.

By the introduction of a regulating-Valve, as shown, in the steam-passage leading to the operating-valve, and operated automatically bythe drum or drum-shaft of the engine, all

undue strains on the Working parts are avoid- A ed and steam is saved to a considerable eX- tent. as only sufficient steam to just run the engine at center position of rudder is supplied through the hy-pass.' All additional steam necessary to do the Work of pulling the rudder hard over from center position must pass through the regulating-valve.

As the regulating-valve is operated by the engine, it does not add any additional fric.- tion or labor when the engine is operated by the hand steering-wheel. l

In some instances the valve g may be so set in the casing G that there will be snihcient leaking to start the engine, thus dispensing with the by-pass.

It will be understood that my invention can be applied to any of the ordinary forms of fluid-operated steering-engines without departing from the invention.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination in a steering-engine, of the drum, engines for operating the same, a controlling-valve operated from the steering- Wheel, and a regulating-valve in the fluidpassage leading to the controlling-valve and connections between the drum and the regulating-valve whereby said valve is operated automatically thereby, substantially as described.

2. The combination in a steering-engine, of a drum, engines for operating the same, a controlling-valve operated from the steeringwheel, a regulating-valve in the fluid-supply passage leading to the controlling-valve and geared to and operated by the drum, a bypass around said valve for the passage of a limited amount of steam to start the engines When the controlling-valve is opened, substantially as described.

3. The combination in a steering-engine, of a drum, an engine controlling the drum, a controlling-valve connected to the steering- Wheel, an automati@regulating-valve casing,

avalve therein, and a screW-threadedvalverod,- a gear-Wheel having a screw-threaded hub adapted to the thread on the rod, and geared to the drum-shaft, substantially as described.

4. The combination in a steering-engine, of a drum, its shaft, a driven shaft geared to the drum-shaft, an engine for driving said driven shaft, a controlling-valve connected to the steering-wheel and controlling the iiow of fluid to the engine,an automatic regulatingvalve geared to the drum-shaft, a steam-supplypipe entering the back of the regulatingvalve casing, a by-pass'pipe extending from the back of the said casin g to the passage leading to the controlling-valve, and a hand-valve in said by-pass, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this s pecication in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

JOHN D. VILLlAMSON, JR. Titnessesz WILL. A. BARR, Jos. H. KLEIN. 

